Skate wheel



Patented Sept. 30, 1952 UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE SKATE WHEEL Vera! E. Deschenes, Seattle, Wash. I Application July 3, 1951, s riali n 'lzsspar This invention relates to improvements in askate wheel and, more particularly is concerned with wheels having metallic hubs including antifriction bearings and wooden or similar treads.

Specifically the wheel herein treated is for skatesof the type used in roller rinks or other places having wooden floors. Such wheels usually' have a tread of non-metallic material of which wood; reconstitutedfibers, or plastic materials are typical examples. Within the tread is a hub or sleeve that is rigid, is usually formed of metal and which must be non-rotatably fixed within the tread and also be so positioned that longitudinal movement of the tread relative the hub is precluded.

The reasons for the use of a relatively soft tread should be apparent when it is considered that these wheels are to be used in rinks wherein the floors are of wood and are to be preserved and protected from undue wear as would be the case with metal wheels on wooden surfaces. The reasons for the prevention of rotation of 6' Claims. (01. 391- 5.?)

the hub relative to the wheel tread and the preclusion of longitudinal movement of the two reside in'the fact that should but the slightest movement take-place not very'longthereafterthe condition rapidly aggravates itself to the result that the parts become completely loosened and unusable.

This problemflhas been previously treated by other inventors whohave cast-in-place various types of interlocksbetween the hub and. tread, or have attempted through the employment of the clamping action. of screw threads to join the one to the other, or have attempted to use keys in keyways that are accessible from the ends of the wheels. .However' these. are considered not the final answer to the problem because the casting;0f. metalin a recess, part metal and part wooden, is not particularly practical; because the use of screw elements to obtain clamping has produced wheels which, due to vibration and other attendant factors, unscrew and become loosened; and because those wheels wherein keys have been employed sometimes, and entirely too often, lose their keys and result in no locking at all. a

Having these and other criticisms of the prior devices in mind, it has been-among the more important objects of this invention to provide an interlocked skate wheel and hub assembly in which the tread and hub have pressing fits and interlocking of the two parts is provided by means readily produced by rotary machining and conventional punching operations; in which relative rotational and longitudinal movement of the parts is precluded; in which the interlocking elements of the assembly is held positively posispaced apart by spacer sleeve 30.

tioned, during use, by the antifriction means normally employed in skate wheels; and in which hidden keying. is employed in obtaining the interlocking oLparts to the end that the keys may. not become dislodged loosened or lost.-

.. Other'objects and advantages of the invention will, be more apparent from the following description of. a specific formof thelska'te' wheel. For the purpose of this descrip'tionand of illustrating-"the invention I have foundlit convenient to and expedient to specify certain materials to show certain physical embodiments. These however are'not to be considered aslimitations since it willbe obvious to those skilled in the art that variations and modifications in materials and the various embodiments may be resorted to commensurate with the scope and spirit of the invention setforth in the subjoined claims.

In the drawings: V L Figure l is a face viewof a skate Wheel accord ing tothis invention;

Figure 21s a diametrlcal sectional view taken on 1ine2-'-2'of Figure'l; V

FigureB' is an enlarged perspective View of the wheel hub, portions having. been broken 'away and omitted for convenience of illustration;

Figureeis an enlarged perspective view of a typical key employed in my skatewheel; and

Figure 5 is a diametrical section of the wheel taken on line 5-5 of Figure 1 with portions omitted.

Since it isobvious that the-device shown herein I may have'other uses than upon roller skates. the use of the Word whee is for the purpose-of covering rotatable members generally and particularly rotatable members such as rollers or the like used in supporting articles for movement or-tran'sposit-ion; r The wheel of Figure 1 comprises the tread'portion I 0; thesleeve or hub 12 having in its interior an anti-friction bearing. M'- -'-that journals the axle I6; i i

The tread i0 is shown formed of wood or similar material and has a cylindrical shape and is provided with an axial bore 20 extending from face to face. Intermediate the ends of'this bore, the-tread iscounterbored to form inwardly open annular grooves 2'2 and 24. These grooves are spaced-apart from each other, preferably sothat they are located symmetricallywithin the wheel tread, and the land 26 therebetweenis thus provided; I

Sleeve l2 forms the hub of "the wheel assembly and is formedof metaL-usually aluminum, Each end of the sleeve is counterbored to receive antifricti'on bearings and between these counterbores is left suflicient metal to form an annular inder. The nner races of'the bearings-are likewise The wheel is mounted upon axle It by having thereduc'ed outer portion 18 of the axle inserted into th'e inner races of the roller bearings I 4 which areseparatedby spacer'sleve and there secured by the nut 3i which presses the inner races of" the bearings togetherthe degree 4 per free turning due to the rolling action of the ball within the antifriction bearings l4.

Hub sleeve I2 has its walls pierced or slotted to form openings 34 through the walls for the reception of the solid metal keys 36. The openings 34 are formed in the sleeve, preferably by a punching operation, in such a location that when the sleeve is pressed firmly into the axial bore of the tread l9, they will be aligned; with, the grooves 22 and24. Inoneinstance one pair'of openings is formed throughjthewall, of the counterbore at one end of the sleeve, as shown to the right in Figure 2. In ,the other instance the second pair of openings passes through the sleeve wall partly from the c unterbor'e portion to the left in Figure 2 and partly through the shoulder 28.

The keys'ZB are shaped'and sized to fit snugly intoand be insertable through the. openings 32 into thegrooves 22 and 24. The keys are in serted as shown after the hub andtread have been'pressed in assembled relation and extend from the bottom of the inwardly facing grooves to the inner surfaces of the hub counter'bores, where they are retained by the outer races of the bearings l4. It will be clearjhat when the keys are in place the hub and tread. portions of the wheel may not move longitudinally of eachother except if the tread is totally destroyed by breakage or' the like.

The outer surface of thehub I2 is roughed or knurled at 38 so that'when it is pressed into the tread the outstanding protuberances of the hub bite into the softer tread-inthe region of the land 26. In this manner the hub. and tread are nonrotatably secured together.

Thepresent arrangement of parts provides a very simple and-highly effective and inexpensive means for forming wheels and rollers. The parts are positively secured together because the keys form a positive radial interlock between the; tread and the hub and so longas, the bearings are in 4 antifriction bearings disposed within said sleeve, each. bearing interiorly closingthe slots communicating with a single groove; axle means journaled in said bearings; and a key fitted in each said slot and seated in a portion of the adjacent groove and extending between the bottom of the groove and the outer surface of the interiorly located antifriction bearing.

2. The structure according to claim 1 in which said keys each are a segment of an annulus and are shaped to fit said groove and to fill the adjacent slot.

3. A skate wheel, comprising: a tread portion having a central bore provided with an inwardly facing groove concentric with the axis of the tread; a rigid sleeveforming a hub for said wheel and having an outer cylindrical surface adapted to fit tightly and non-rotatably into said central bore, said sleeve having through the wall thereof a'pair of spaced aparhslots communicating with and located radially inward of said groove; a pair of longitudinally spaced apart antifriction bearings disposed within said sleeve, one of said bearings closing the slots communicating withsaid groove; axle means journaled in said bearings; and a key fitted in each said slotand seated in a portion of the adjacent groove and extending between the bottom" of .the groove andthe outer surface of the interiorlylocated antifriction-bearmg; v c.

, ,4.'Th6 structure according to claim 3 in which said keys are each a segment of an annulus and are shaped to fit said groove and 'to fill the adjacent slot.

place no longitudinal movement can take place.

In use such a wheel is subjected, particularly in skating, to many and repeatedvibrational forces and stresses of a variety of natures. These stresses and forces which normally tend to destroy the wheel are in my invention effectively prevented from acting to the end that the wheel does not become loosened so that self-destruction may start. i Also it will be noted that the arrangements provides a skate wheel which is free of peripheral aperatures as well as axial openings, other than those provided for the hub as is the case with many of the prior art devices 1 The outer face of the-wheel is shown provided with a press fit cap (wthat overs the axleencl and nut 3|. A seal may likewisebe applied to Y the inner bearing if such is desired-" Having thus described myinvention, I claim;

1. A skate wheel, comprising: a treadportion having a; central bore provided, intermediate its ends,'with a pair of spaced apart inwardly facing roo q tr w th a f s id; re d;

rigid sleeve forming a hub fonsaid wheel and' having an outer cylindrical surface adapted to fit 5. A skate wheel, comprising: a tread portion havin a central bore ,provided with anon-rotatably fitted hub, 'saidtread bore having around said hub a pair of inwardly open spacedapart grooves and said hub having an opening there'- through in communicationwith each groove; a key fitting in each said opening and extending outward of said hub in a radial manner into the corresponding groove; and a separate cylindrical member'positioned inwardly of each groove within said hub and closing said openings thereby retaining said keys in position.

6. A skate wheel, comprising: a tread portion having a central :bore provided with an inwardly facing groove concentric with the axis of'the tread; a sleeve formingahub for said wheel and fitted in said bore in a. manner preventing rotatightly and non-rotatably into said central boreand thlexland, betweensaid grooves, said sleeve having, through the wall thereof slots comniuni;

eating with and located radially inward ofeach groove; a pair of longitudinally spaced apart tion therebetween; said sleeve having through the wall thereof a slotcommunicating with and located radially inward of-said groove; an antifriction bearing disposed within said sleeve and closing said slot communicating with said groove;

axle means journaled in said bearing; and a key fitted in said slot and seated in a portion of said groove and extendingbetween the bottom of the groove and the louter surface of said bearing.

VERAL E. DESCHENES.

E R NC SI ED The following references are of record inthe file of this patent: V UNITED srA r sfr TENTs Number .Name Date 1,116,362 Anthony Nov. 10, 1914 1,339,163v Cox May 4, 1920 1,375,037 LaBarre Apr. 19, 1921 1,910,795, Han May 23, 1933- 2,316,498 .Biczak Apr. 13, 1943 2,552,035. Cooke. May 8,1951 

